Capturing A Rajang In Akira Toriyama's Honor
1On March 1st (JST) Japan lost one of the most influential and creative minds in anime and manga history, but the rest of the world didn't know until March 7th to 8th. Akira Toriyama passed away due to a blood clot in his brain, which is the worst part. So many great things came from his brain and that's how he died.
Akira Toriyama's greatest rise to fame was the Dragon Ball franchise. All the way back in 1984, he released the original Dragon Ball to Japan and the rest as they say was history. From the success of the manga came the equally as beloved anime, its sequel DBZ which became iconic and set the bar high for the battle Shonen genre, Dragon Ball GT which was very divisive amongst the fandom, Super which is still ongoing and one more series that was Toriyama's last piece of work before his passng. To say this franchise was beloved all over the world is an understatement. Dragon Ball Z and Super are extremely popular within the black community and the entire franchise is considered a religion in Mexico, Central and South America. Son Goku, the main protagonist, is like a second Jesus down there which shows you how far Toriyama's impact on the industry went. Not just to the world, but to other mangakas as well. Oda, Kishimoto and Kubo idolised Akira Toriyama to the point where THEY became mangakas today. One Piece, Naruto and Bleach wouldn't be what they are today if not for Akira Toriyama's influence on those two. Likewise with other battle Shonen that came years later. My Hero Academia, Demon Slayer, Jujutsu Kaisen, Black Clover. If you love a battle Shonen, no doubt that Akira Toriyama had an influence to it directly or through someone he was an idol to.
Anime and manga was also not where his influence reached. He was also the arts illustrator for video games such as Sand Land (his last work before his passing), the iconic Chrono Trigger and Dragon Quest. So if the art designs of the characters do feel familiar to you, then yes. Akira Toriyama had a hand in those games as well.
There's also Street Fighter if you look hard enough and then there's the Monster Hunter series that introduced Rajang to its lineup in the second generation. A mixture of a monkey, gorilla and a bull whose fur changes gold when it's enraged and hard red arms (kaioken) when it's really pissed off. A mixture of the Chinese story which Akira Toriyama used as a base for Dragon Ball and his own influence on his series rolled into one angry monkey. For this video, I took a break from #returntoworld to capture a Rajang in honor of Akira Toriyama and his legacy which he left behind.
Rest in peace, Akira Toriyama, and thank you for shaping my childhood.
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